Do you know how to improve your personal statement?

You only have a limited word count for your resume, so you should carefully consider each word that goes on it. Every bit of information you share about yourself on a resume will have an impact on the hiring decision. So, how do you make a great first impression with a resume from the start? By creating a compelling resume summary statement.

It is a known fact the employers scan resumes in an F-pattern or an E-pattern. Either way, the information you display in the first half of the first page of your document gets more attention. This is why you are always encouraged to include the most important and impressive information about your career in the first page of your resume.

The personal statement or the summary statement of your resume carries a lot of weight. It is a 2-4 line summary of your entire resume that narrates the best achievements, skills, and experiences of your career related to the job. Your summary statement acts as an elevator pitch that sells your skills to an employer.

The key aim of your summary statement should be to intrigue a hiring manager so that they would read the whole document. Hiring managers typically sort through resumes quickly, allowing only a few seconds per each document. Within this short time, your summary statement should pique their interest so that your resume lands in the “yes” pile.

A personal statement carries a lot of information about your carrier even though it is very short. Some of the information that goes in the summary statement are your relevant:

• Years of experience
• Areas of expertise
• Personal qualities
• Specialized industries
• Professional achievements
• Hard and soft skills
• Transferable skills

It is important to read the job description thoroughly before you start writing your summary statement. Just like you align your entire resume with the job description, your summary statement too must be relevant to it. A typical summary statement can be broken down into three sections:

• An opening line that summarizes your experience
• One or two lines describing your present work, achievements, and what talents you bring to the table.
• A closing line that outlines your career aspirations with the employer.

Since your summary statement highlights the most important parts of your resume, some industry experts advice that you should start writing it the last. Once all the other sections of your resume are filled in, it is easier for you to prioritize the most important information. For a better writing experience, you can start by creating a rough draft of your summary . Simply start a blank document and list three of your most important and relevant hard skills, soft skills, professional achievements, and experiences.

If you are writing a resume summary statement without any paid work experience, you should lead with your education and the skills you have honed through your degree. You can focus your summary on academic achievements and important soft skills. You can also mention any internships or volunteer work you have done which are relevant to the new role.

If you are creating a career change resume , you may not have relevant experiences to talk about in your summary statement. In such instances, you can focus on your transferable skills when writing your summary. If you have taken any courses that are relevant for the new industry, you can mention them in your summary too.

Want assistance with your resume summary? Resume Mansion can help you. Visit www.resumemansion.com today and talk to one of our certified resume writers.